There's a pretty neat interactive feature about Sputnik on Statesman.com today. There's all sort of fun stuff on there, like videos of the Explorer and Sputnik launches... Also, you can read press from the days surrounding the launch.
It's a pesky Flash app. and I can link to the specific page... but this deserves some typing time. Here goes.
From Oct. 6, 1957, The Austin American
Reds' Launching called 'Trespass'
CHICAGO, Oct. 6 -- James T. Mangan, who claims he founded the nation of celestial space, said today he will protest the Russian satellite launching as "an uprovoked trespassing into my territory."
Mangan, a 60-year-old public relations consultant of suburban Evergreen Park, said he will notify the Russians by letter of their "violations of his territory."
He homesteaded outer space Dec. 21, 1918, by declaring its existence and writing a charter. The charter was filed Jan. 18, 1919 in the Cook County (Chicago) recorder's office after a favorable legal opinion from the state's attorney.
Mangan named his frontier nation "Celestia" and said the trademark was approved a week or so ago by the US Patent Office. A year ago, he said, registration of the nation's grand seal was approved.
Asked whether he planned to shoot down the man-made moon, Mangan said, "The nation of celestial space works more on the principle of moral persuasion than force."
He added that he had applied for United Nations membership but was told the UN charter did not entitle him to it.
"If the Russians had asked permission to enter my space nation," said Mangan, "I might have granted it."
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